Phils counting on depth with Halladay struggling

CLEARWATER, Fla. -- Roy Halladay has Phillies fans concerned that they might never again see the veteran right-hander dominate as he had his first two seasons in Philadelphia.

The next phase of that drama will be played out when Halladay starts St. Patrick’s Day against the Orioles. If he falters, fans will drown out their sorrows in green beer. If he bounces back from Tuesday’s “lethargic” performance against the Tigers, relieved fans will celebrate with green beer.

If only Halladay could be as dependable in 2013 as the green beer will be Sunday.

Thursday afternoon at Bright House Field, there was no green beer. But the two pitchers who are most likely to be called upon if Halladay or any other starter were to need time on the disabled list were served to patrons.

Like green beer, Aaron Cook and Rodrigo Lopez might not look like something you’d want to imbibe, but they did the job against the Pirates.

Cook, who earlier in his career had been enough of a ground-ball machine at Coors Field to become the rare Rockies starting pitcher named an All-Star, got a bunch of worm-burners in his three shutout innings of work in the Phils’ 2-1 win.

“I probably don’t have the velocity I had,” said Cook, referring to his 2008 All-Star season, when he went 16-9 with a 3.98 ERA with the Rockies. “But pitch location, and I probably have a couple more pitches with the cutter and the slider that I didn’t have then. So I feel I can pitch a little better, and the results so far are OK.”

Lopez, who made five underrated starts for the Phillies when they were desperate for help in 2009, only to get tossed aside when Cliff Lee and Pedro Martinez were acquired to come to the rescue, worked two shutout innings after Cook and hasn’t given up a run in seven Grapefruit League frames.

“He was great,” Rich Dubee said of Lopez’s time in Philly in 2009. “He’s a good competitor. He knows what he’s doing out there.”

“He doesn’t give in,” Charlie Manuel said of the Mexican. “He definitely knows how to pitch.”

Lopez didn’t do much to convince teams he still has big-league innings in him last season. He made four nondescript appearances for the Cubs, but spent most of the year getting hit around (2-5, 5.28 ERA) for Triple-A Iowa. What got him this shot was a very good winter.

“I feel like I can help the team coming off a good winter,” said Lopez, who went 5-1 with a 0.94 ERA in seven starts in the Mexican Winter League. “I feel I’m back on track.”

No team ever wants to think about the consequences of needing the No. 6 and 7 starting-pitcher options for a huge chunk of the season. And judging by their regular-season work in recent years, the 34-year-old Cook and 37-year-old Lopez certainly have seen their better days. However, it’s tough to dismiss them for the younger arms in the system at this point. While Lopez hasn’t allowed a run, Cook has a 2.45 ERA and has gotten better with each start. Young pitchers Jonathan Pettibone, Ethan Martin and Adam Morgan -- the three best starting prospects the Phils had in camp -- were bombed before getting optioned or reassigned to the minor-league camp last weekend.

“Depth is always important,” Dubee said. “We’ve always talked about that. With Cook and Lopez you have some experience for sure. We also feel we have some young kids knocking on the door here soon. We came in this year with a bullpen that we feel is as deep as it’s been in a long time, so you’re always trying to add depth in pitching.”

Cook, who is 13-29 with a 5.54 ERA over the last three years after going 27-15, 4.05 ERA in 2008-09 in Colorado, is trying to show that injuries were more of an issue than eroding ability. He certainly had his sinker working Thursday, as a fielding error by Chase Utley on a routine grounder in the second inning was mostly to blame for the only trouble he had on the day.

If Cook needs to bide time as a long reliever or a starter in Triple-A, he is willing to wait for the opportunity.

“I would love to start,” Cook said, “but at this point it’s to pitch in the big leagues. Not too many people get to say they do that for a living.”

Besides, almost every team needs someone to step in as a starter at some point. Considering Halladay’s shaky spring, the Phils could be in need sooner than they’d prefer.